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John Burton, beer memorabilia collector, is our guest on Brew Ha Ha with Steve Jaxon and Herlinda Heras today. He is working with Herlinda Heras who is assisting the Museum of Sonoma County with its upcoming exhibition ON TAP, about Sonoma County hops and the history or craft brewing.
John Burton made a great collection of beer memorabilia while he worked as a bartender in Santa Rosa for a long time. He also operates a well-known bartending school called Santa Rosa Bartending.
Herlinda has organized interviews with some of the biggest names in local beer history, like Tony McGee and Mark Carpenter, for the museum. She connected them to John Burton and he will be providing some choice items for the exhibit.
Grace Bros. was a local brand that started in 1897 in Santa Rosa and the brand continued until the late 1960s. John’s collection of bottles and cans starts in their first year. John has a lot of Grace Bros. pieces.
A 1960s Grace Bros. Beer Commercial
In the show, we hear a 30-second commercial for Grace Bros. beer, from John’s collection. It was recorded probably in the 1960s in Hollywood, California. In the 1940s, Grace Bros. was the fourth-largest brewery in California. Here is the commercial:
Russian River Brewing Co. is open in Santa Rosa on 4th St. and at their big Windsor location. Visit their website for up-to-date hours, menus, beers and more.
John Burton is a member of a beer memorabilia organization that organizes exhibits. Herlinda’s friend Ken Hartoonian also has a collection. He was a guest on Brew Ha Ha recently. John shares memories of the Grace family and how they decided to stay in Santa Rosa instead of Southern California.
See our sponsor Victory House at Poppy Bank Epicenter online, for their latest viewing and menu options.
John is also the writer and publisher of some books about his collection. He has also written an instructional book about bartending, called Bartending Basics.
Herlinda is organizing a reception for all of the ‘legends’ of the local brewing industry. She will invite the founding fathers and mothers of the business. She is looking forward to the On Tap exhibition being full of really interesting, beautiful and memorable material.
Visit Homerun Pizza, home of the Knuckleball! Fresh pizza dough made from scratch daily, la pizza è deliziosa!
Russian River Brewing is a sponsor of the exhibit, so is Lagunitas and Oliver’s Market. The sculpture garden is beautiful and they will turn it into a beer garden for one evening. The grand opening is April 27.